A sitz bath is a bath for bathing in a sitting position and also treating the affected areas of a patient. In this type of device the patient literally sits in the bath which is filled with heated water that may or may not include medication for treating the affected area.
There are presently available small portable tubs and fixed closet installations that are used for the purpose of a sitz bath but they are inadequate, inconvenient and messy. It is difficult or impossible to contain the water in the tub, difficult to maintain the desired temperature and very patient unfriendly and uncomfortable. It would be advantageous if a sitz bath could be provided at the bedside where the person can be bathed and treated, particularly when the patient is marginally ambulatory.
A number of devices are available for treating invalid patients in baths but in those cases those patients must first be transported to the bath. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,648,849 a chair is described for use with invalid patients. In this patent a seat is removably positioned over a bathtub. The patient may then be positioned in the chair and then lowered into the tub.
A similar device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,280,409 in which a lift is provided for a sitz bath. In this patent a hydraulically operated lift is provided over a tub. The lift will raise and lower a chair that is mounted on a swivel. A non-ambulatory patient can be seated on the chair positioned over the tub and then lowered into the water in the tub.
There is also a bath system for people constrained to wheelchairs described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,662,409 issued May 16, 1972. In this patent a bath having a shape similar to a chair is designed for use in domestic bathrooms. The bath has a door on a forward portion that opens allowing a person in a wheelchair to enter the bath. The door is then closed. Controls are provided for filling the tub with water and discharging the water after the bath. The bath system is not portable and therefore cannot be transported to the place where the patient is to be treated.
There is also a primitive portable personal sitz bath kit that includes a tub and a hot water bottle. The hot water bottle is filled with temperate water and hung up at some convenient place. The patient then sits in the tub placed on a suitable surface and the water is released from the water bottle. The tub is preferably constructed to fit the shape of a toilet bowl, so that the toilet bowl can be used as a seat. After use, the tub is emptied into the toilet bowl, rinsed and stored. While this is economical, it is not very convenient or comfortable and certainly would not be useful for non-ambulatory patients.
In present practice in hospitals, patients who need to be treated in a sitz bath are transported by wheelchair or a gurney to the site of the sitz bath, usually a small closet-like enclosure. The patient is then placed in the sitz bath for a period of time sufficient for treatment. Water in the bath is kept fairly temperate but sufficient to provide the proper treatment. Temperatures generally do not go much over 100.degree. with a maximum of 105.degree. being preferred. After treatment the patient must be dried and transported back to his room and placed in his bed. This is inconvenient and hazardous for marginally ambulatory patients and can lead to considerable trauma. It would be advantageous if a sitz bath could be transported to the side of the patient's bed for treatment.degree.
It is therefore one object of the present invention to provide a portable sitz bath and therapeutic chair that is easily transported to the patient's bedside for treatment.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a portable sitz bath and therapeutic chair which is comfortable and completely self contained for providing sitz bath treatment of a patient.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a portable sitz bath therapeutic chair that has an electronic circuit to maintain the temperature of the water during treatment of the patient and provide therapeutic water streams and agitating bubbling action of said streams.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a portable sitz bath therapeutic chair with readily available convenient controls for the patient or a hospital worker to use during treatment.